Ribosomal suppressors and antisuppressors in Podospora anserina: altered susceptibility to paromomycin and relationships between genetic and phenotypic suppression.

Informational suppressors and antisuppressors have been previously isolated in Podospora anserina, and their properties suggest that they could be ribosomal mutants involved in the control of translational fidelity. In this paper we present results concerning relationships between these mutants and paromomycin, an aminoglycoside antibiotic known to stimulate translational errors. The mutants were found to manifest an altered growth sensitivity to this drug as compared with the wild-type strain: Most of the suppressors were more sensitive and, in contrast, most of the antisuppressors were more resistant to paromomycin. Moreover, phenotypic suppression of an auxotrophic mutation by paromomycin was observed only if a suppressor and an antisuppressor had been introduced in the strain. These results suggest that ambiguity levels could be altered in the suppressor and antisuppressor strains. In addition, paromomycin was shown to abolish sporulation, which suggests relationships between mistranslation and a step of cellular differentiation.